Vice President bats for ethical, responsible leadership for building inclusive India

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu has said that ethical and responsible leadership is the need of the hour, while underlining the need to ensure "hassle-free service to the last man living in the remotest part of the country."

"Understanding the ground realities, interaction with common people and observing the changing aspirations of the youth are very important for the people aspiring to be in public life," he said.

Naidu was interacting with students from the Indian Institute of Democratic Leadership promoted by Thane-based Rambhau Mhalgi Prabodhini (RMP) here on Wednesday.

He also stressed upon the need for students perusing a career in public life to acquire a decent understanding of the role and responsibility of every institution and their importance in the functioning of a democracy that has more than 130 crore population with a different set of aspirations.

The Vice President said that a clean government, clear vision and committed leadership were needed to transform the lives of people. He urged upon the universities, colleges, and institutions to inculcate such qualities in students from their school days.

Naidu said that making students understand the functioning of a democratic republic and introducing them to Parliamentary system was also needed.

He said that an aware citizenry, a vibrant and responsible civil society, a robust institutional framework and responsive bureaucracy were crucial to India's efforts towards making the country free from hunger, atrocities, inequalities, and discrimination based on cast, gender, and religion.

The Vice President stressed upon the need to strengthen systems that incorporate technology into "our governance systems to ensure hassle-free service to the last man living in the remotest part of the country."

Naidu asked the youth to have a democratic mind that is receptive to new ideas and tolerant to other views. "Respecting the mandate of the people was important for democracy to succeed. One must learn to respect it," he said.